Geoff Costello
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 p.1 #1 · 50D, 5D replacement and beyond | |
Hi :-)
I refer to the now locked thread titled "Canon 50D Leaked on China Site" (http://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic/679656 )and the debate over the specs concern over higher MP etc... I can't resist (to you know who you are - I'm sorry!!!)...
Canon is waking up. They are aware of what Sony and Nikon are going to release (have been for some while) and are on an active fightback program. The loss of DSLR market share starting 18 months or so woke up Canon about 12 months ago. The new R&D has taken a while. There are new leaders in the Canon DLSR area, and a new pace of change. Not as fast as some would like. But this year and next year, far faster than many of the doomsayers on this and other forums imagine.
There is a 5D replacement coming soon. And other FF soon. For a while now Canon is shortening is DSLR cycles too. The ID III and IDs III will not have the usual 1D three year lifecycle. And in the short term, Canon has the flexibility to reprice the 1Ds III to anything it likes down to as little as $1000 more than the 1D III. Gives them some breathing space (in the same way they did with the 5D pricing down towards the D300 when the D3 came out.)
DIGIC IV is real and part of Canons DSLR futures. It has the 2 to 1 and 4 to 1 pixel binning and next generation noise reduction capabilities. Note the sRAW1 and sRAW2 specs. sRAW1 with a 15.1mp sensor creates great 7.6mp images with something like a 2 stop noise advantage over the 30D at 8mp. They can take a 15.1mp sensor and ISO 12800 and produce stunning images in sRAW2. You can do your own maths about a 21mp (or so) FF sensor and DIGIC IV.
DIGC IV also has a HD movie mode waiting in the wings - don’t laugh about this being a toy you can take newspaper print quality images off any frame, just like the RED cameras.
Canon have been working on 100% microlens, low voltage low noise sensors capable of native ISO 12800. They suffer from some quantisation noise at smaller pixel sizes (limited by physics) but this is fixed by pixel binning to create virtual larger pixels when you need the really high ISOs. The 50D has equivalent per pixel noise to the 40D – less when looked at on a noise per frame perspective. There are some real advances to be obtained yet in sensor design.
DIGIC V is already in engineering design for even faster image handling. Imagine a future with a full frame 50mp sensor with virtually no noise at up to ISO 800 (awesome for studio work). Imagine the same sensor with sRAW1 and 25mp and ISO performance and 3200 better than the current 1Ds III… or 5D. And sRAW2 at 12.5mp and ISO 12800 performance that looks like today’s 5D at 3200. Or even an 8 to 1 sRAW3. Candlelight shooting anyone!
Yes it would be nice to have pro-AF and more (there’s some features for the 60D and beyond). But the 50D camera is a big step forward. The cross type AF points lock and track really well. And ultimately there will always be features in the top of the line cameras that are not in the mid series.
And… Nikon has its D90 and 25Mp in the D3 style body and 25MP in a D700 like body cameras coming… Sony has two 25 Mp cameras planned and is also working on their own sensors up to 50Mp and openly talking to others about it. Canon is not doing this for altruism. Canon has planned its cameras to slot in between (and in some cases ahead) of Nikons in terms of features and price and has put what it considers to be some highly desirable features in each camera model to catch aspirational buyers.
Oh, and Nikon has a massive computer imaging design based lens program, with the new 12-24 F2.8 and 24-70 F2.8 being good examples. It is part of its program of targeting the professional market with a series of market leading lenses covering all the main focus ranges (sadly not too many primes planned yet). There are a slew of new Nikon lenses coming over the next couple of year…. So… Canon (a little slower than with this year’s bodies) is starting to focus on lens replacements and upgrades. Moving away from its previous more hand crafted design to the sophisticated computer controlled light modelling design techniques. Expect 2009 and 2010 to be very interesting lens wise… (A number of the lenses are being redone to get higher resolutions so as to not be embarrassed when FF sensors reach 50mp)
So, knock the specs if you want… Believe me or not if you want. The resolution, the noise the convenience features of the new 50D will speak for themselves when it is announced. Some will not be happy, wanting their 1D III specs for 1/3 the price… (just wait a couple of years). Even I would like (not expect, but like) D300 like AF but hey that would beat the 1D III). And (from what I know) the new 5D replacement, along with, later new FF, are also deeply impressive cameras carefully targeted knowing the specs of the new Nikon and Sony FF. They are far from the ‘warmed up” 40Ds that we would have had if the 5D replacement had have come out last year.
I know I’ll be replacing my 40D and 5D (instead of just my 5D), my only quandary is wither two new FF or a 50D and a 5D replacement… And, despite the protests from some of you – so will many of those on this forum with 5D or 20D/30D etc. Certainly IMO the new cameras achieve Canon’s objective of taking away any reason to move to Nikon for most people with any significant investment in Canon glass, and being extremely competitive price wise for new buyers. Could they be better (of course always). Will some people prefer a Nikon or Sony model for valid reasons for them (of course !). Will there be features that people will fight to the death that should have been added or should not have been added (you bet that’s what happens on internet forums). Feature differentiation at work just as in most markets. We are in for an amazing ride over the next 2 to 3 years as Canon, Nikon and Sony 'slug it out' adding features and pushing the limits of physics in some cases. Buy the largest CF or SD cards you can if you want to enjoy the megapixel and speed ride we will be on!
Have a great and wonderful day ;-)
Edited on Aug 22, 2008 at 08:42 AM
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